Locals Oppose Bolton Intensive Dairy Farm Planning Application in Green Belt

16 Feb

A planning application to build an intensive dairy unit on green belt land between Hindley and Westhoughton has been submitted to Bolton Council. [1]

The council does not display planning application objections on their website, but after a freedom of information request Communities Against Factory Farming (CAFF) found out that there are over 700 objections so far.
The farm already has five intensive poultry units, which were controversially approved to be built on the green belt land in 2012 (first two) and 2017 (three more). Initially they housed 33,000 birds each but this has increased to 40,000, bringing the current total to 200,000 chickens. [2]
Locals are extremely concerned that the development would increase the pollution risk to local protected sites, increase odours and air pollution, harm local waterways, increase pandemic risks, lower food security, and demonstrate poor animal welfare.
The council states that the determination deadline is 19/2/26.

Hindley locals have been out campaigning against proposals for an intensive dairy farm of 160 cows on green belt land. Communities Against Factory Farming (CAFF) have been supporting the campaign.

River Action reports show that there is a 69% non-compliance rate on inspected dairy farms in England, so the Planning Authority should not rely on the assumption that non-planning regimes, like Farming Rules for Water, will prevent water pollution from the site. [3] Following two legal rulings last year, the local planning authority must have clear evidence that both slurry and digestate from this intensive operation will not cause environmental harm before they can approve it. [4] Borsdane Wood Local Nature Reserve (LNR) and Borsdane Wood (East) Site of Biological Importance (SBI) (Ancient Woodland) are located just 96m west of the site.

Neil Hancox, a local resident, said:

“I am very worried about the potential impact of this development on our beautiful Borsdane Wood. These types of units have ruined rivers throughout the country and I don’t want that to happen to Borsdane Brook.”

The British public are strongly against the indoor confinement of cows, with one poll finding that 86% of adults agree that cows should be able to graze outside. [5] All indications from the plans are that the cows would be housed indoors all year round.

CAFF has helped locals overturn planning permission for multiple intensive animal facilities, including poultry houses on the Staffordshire-Shropshire border, after a legal challenge claiming there were deficiencies in the council's assessment of environmental impacts and animal welfare concerns. [6] Locals hope that a similar approach can be taken in this case, should the council ignore the objections and approve the plans.

Jo Lazarus, CAFF Campaign Coordinator, said:

“Local people are being asked to live alongside an industrial-scale dairy unit that brings real risks of pollution, odour, and harm to nearby woodland and public spaces. It would also entrench a form of dairy farming that the majority of people are uncomfortable with, where mother cows and calves are separated shortly after birth and go on to suffer short lives spent indoors. We need councils to promote and support sustainable agricultural developments; methods of food production with low carbon footprints, low water usage and that improve food security. We’re calling on Bolton Council to listen to residents and reject this application.”

The development poses a significant environmental and public health hazard by situating a new intensive dairy unit directly adjacent to existing poultry units. The close proximity of two intensive animal operations (poultry and dairy) creates a serious biosecurity risk, specifically the potential for viruses, such as highly virulent strains of bird flu (H5N1), to jump between species, which has serious implications for public health. This has already started to happen in the US, with first reports appearing in 2024. [7]

ENDS

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